Forks Over Knives, and food in general

So, if you’ve followed this blog at all, you probably remember when I tried to go vegan. My results were mixed. I eat far fewer meat products today than I did before that experiment, and I consider that a win. I don’t think that meat has to be a part of every meal anymore, and I consider that a win, too. But I still eat meat fairly regularly, and I still consume dairy products regularly (although I rarely drink milk – my main offenders are butter and cheese). So it’s made me a better person, but I still struggle with truly eliminating meat and dairy from my diet.

So when I watch a documentary like Forks Over Knives, I REALLY WANT to be a vegan. I understand the health benefits, and I believe the science behind them is accurate, at least in a “playing the odds” sort of way. Could I still die from a heart attack or cancer if I eat a vegan diet? Sure, but it’s far less likely, and that’s really indisputable. When the evidence is presented in forums such as these (documentaries, books, etc.), it’s easy to see why eating meat/dairy is a bad thing, and it’s easy to declare fealty to the vegan lifestyle.

But we all know this is harder than it sounds.

Why? There are many reasons that affect different people in different ways, but here are my main reasons:

Meat tastes good – This is something that is pretty much ignored in these books and documentaries, but it’s just plain true. Yes, a McDonald’s hamburger is pretty gross, and anything that is a “nugget” is downright repulsive. But a medium rare steak from a choice piece of meat? Well cooked BBQ (preferably from the Carolinas, but I’ll settle for any well cooked BBQ as long as it’s pork [sorry, Texas, but that’s not BBQ])? A perfectly cooked pork chop? A masterfully made burger? Fried chicken from a Southern kitchen? These are truly delicious meals, and I am loathe to give them up entirely.

Southern food culture requires meat – I didn’t come from rural China or an island nation in the Pacific. I came from North Carolina and a mother who is a truly exceptional Southern cook. I know a lot of people think their mothers are great cooks, but most of you are wrong. In most cases, your mothers were good cooks. My mom is a great one. Most of my fondest childhood memories revolve around her food, but it wasn’t until much later in life that I realized how bad for me they were. Even though my mom now understands the health benefits of eating less meat, she is still suspicious of things like “baby bok choy” and “not having gravy.” These things are hard to let go.

Eating well is expensive – Sad, but true. Eating foods that are good for you is far more expensive than eating foods that are bad for you. There are many reasons for this, and a lot of them are poltical, and the whiskey is going to keep me from broaching those reasons. But a cheeseburger at McDonald’s costs less than a head of lettuce, and that is just crazy. Now, eating well likely saves you money in the long run when compared with the healthcare costs associated with poor eating habits, but that’s difficult to see in your paycheck twice per month.

Eating well takes more effort – Frozen and canned foods are easy to prepare. Fresh foods require washing, chopping and longer cook times. Tonight, in order to eat “healthy,” I had a Caesar salad (I tore up Romaine lettuce with my hands, added Parmesan cheese, croutons and store bought Caesar dressing) and a bowl of popcorn. That was my best effort after working a full day and commuting for just over two hours total. You know what would have been easier? Thai takeout. Wendy’s. Pretty much anything on my way home, and most of it wouldn’t have cost me much more than that salad and popcorn.

So what’s the point here? The point is, I want to eat better. But I am fighting my tastes, my culture, my wallet and my time constraints to do it, and at least up until now, I have often given in to one of these (legitimate) excuses. Eating well in America is really hard to do, even for someone that has every advantage. I make enough money to eat well, I am childless, and I’m married to a wonderful woman with a fairly flexible schedule. Yes, I commute an hour each way right now, but I also work from home two days per week. I grew up in an unhealthy (but delicious) food culture, but I imagine most of America had a similar experience. In short, I have every advantage necessary to change my eating habits, yet I find it supremely difficult to do.

As I look around, I can see that I’m not alone in this struggle. Most of us know that being healthy is pretty simple. Eat a mostly whole foods, plant based diet and exercise a little. That is essentially every effective diet and exercise program on the market. And yet that simple advice is so incredibly difficult to follow. I wish there were more honest discussion in the mainstream about this struggle. There are plenty of folks that want to tell you what you should do, and there are also a lot of folks that want to tell you about how simple it is to make the changes they’ve made in order to be healthy. But simple and easy are not the same thing, and I wish there was more dialogue about the ongoing struggle required to make these changes. Personally, I know what I should do, and I know the benefits of doing it. I also know the costs of not doing it. But those facts don’t make the change easier, and everyone seems to ignore that.

I don’t know what my point here is, other than I am continuing to struggle with this. I highly recommend the documentary, and I solicit any words of wisdom you have about taking its advice.

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Oh I hear you loud and clear. I have absolutely no reason to not eat better but I will quickly come up with the excuses of both #1 & 4. I salivate with the thought of a good steak or burger and when it comes to #4? I’m flat out lazy. There. I’ve said it. Thankfully I’m in a place now where you can easily get healthier, local options delivered to your door. But then we have to look at #3. 😦